Agent vs Edit mode — two AI postures, one click apart

Hydite ships two AI modes inside the editor: Agent for autonomous multi-step execution, Edit for surgical single-shot changes. Switch with one click in the status bar — and both honour Hydite High Privacy mode.

When you're coding, AI requests typically fall in two camps:

• "Just build the whole thing for me" — needs task breakdown, multi-file edits, command execution, test feedback.
• "Make this one line a bit better" — don't reason about 100 things; just fix the code under my cursor.

Stuffing both into the same chat box is a recipe for pain: ask for a small tweak and the AI rewrites half your project; ask it to take charge and it pings you on every line.

Hydite splits these into two distinct modes — Agent and Edit — toggled with one click in the editor's bottom-right status bar. They never get in each other's way.

1. The one-line difference#

Mnemonic: Agent is a colleague. Edit is your second hand at the keyboard.

2. Agent mode — let the AI drive#

Use this when you're willing to hand over a slice of time to the AI.

What it does#

1. Plan first: outputs a plan with files to touch, commands to run, acceptance criteria.
2. Multi-step execution: queries the semantic index, edits files, runs tests, reads logs, iterates until done.
3. Parallel agents (optional): dispatches multiple agents into isolated Git worktrees that run side-by-side.
4. Pause-able: interrupt / rollback / resume at any time.

Typical prompt#

1
Refactor src/api/users from callbacks to async/await,
2
fill in the TypeScript types, and run the related tests.

Agent will: scan the directory → list files → plan diffs → edit file by file → pnpm test → read output → fix red → report.

When not to use Agent#

• You only want to change one line / one function. Edit is faster, sharper, and cheaper on tokens.
• You already know exactly what you want; you don't need the AI to "think more".

3. Edit mode — your AI co-pilot#

Use this when you already know what to change and just want it written well.

What it does#

• Looks only at the current file / selection + necessary references. It will not wander into other parts of the repo.
• Emits a diff preview. Cmd/Ctrl + Enter to accept, Esc to discard.
• No "let me run a command" or "let me read 50 more files" detours.

Typical prompt (invoked on a selection)#

1
Make this function pure — don't mutate the arguments.

1
Extract this JSX into a <UserCard /> component.

1
Add full TS generics and JSDoc to this hook.

Edit mode discipline#

• No new files: creating files goes through Agent.
• No commands: running tests / installing deps goes through Agent.
• No drift: it does what you asked — it doesn't "while I'm here" rewrite everything.

4. One-click switching — top-left of the IDE#

You don't need a command palette or a settings page. The mode toggle lives in the IDE's top-left (the same pill shown in the hero image at the top of this page). Click it, or hit Cmd/Ctrl + ., to flip between Agent / Edit.

Switching is conversation-scoped:

• Switch to Agent: the current chat goes multi-step. Context from your Edit session carries over so Agent can build on it.
• Switch to Edit: the current chat collapses to single-shot diffs. If your cursor is on a selection, Edit uses that selection as its target.

The pill also lets you change defaults: which mode opens by default, the keyboard shortcut, and per-project memory — project A defaults to Edit, project B defaults to Agent, the IDE remembers.

5. High Privacy mode — a separate switch in the input box (bottom-left)#

Many AI editors' "privacy mode" only covers autocomplete. Hydite is different — both Agent and Edit fully honour High Privacy mode.

5.1 Where to flip it#

High Privacy is a separate switch that only appears in Agent mode (Edit's scope is small enough that it doesn't independently call the cloud).

Once you're in Agent mode, look at the bottom-left of the input box — click that pill to enter / leave High Privacy:

Clicking it opens a detailed scope panel where every privacy axis is visible and individually confirmable:

5.2 What Agent looks like under High Privacy#

Translation: in finance / government / classified projects, Agent still runs multi-step — its "brain" just stays inside your data centre.

Once enabled, the input-box pill gets a lock indicator and the status bar continuously reminds you that nothing leaves your machine.

6. Decision tree#

1
┌──────────────────────────────────────────────┐
2
│ What am I changing?                          │
3
├──────────────────────────────────────────────┤
4
│ 1–2 spots, clear target          → Edit       │
5
│ Multi-file / cross-module / tests → Agent     │
6
│ Not sure, want a plan first       → Agent     │
7
│ Classified project                → High      │
8
│                                     Privacy + │
9
│                                     either    │
10
└──────────────────────────────────────────────┘

7. FAQ#

Q: Can Edit hand off to Agent mid-session? A: Yes. Click the top-left pill to switch to Agent — Agent inherits Edit's conversation context and continues.

Q: I changed my mind mid-Agent. What now? A: Esc to interrupt. Anything Agent did inside its worktree / temp branch can be rolled back in one click.

Q: Can Agent still call cloud models in High Privacy? A: Cloud models are off by default. If you've allowlisted specific cloud models, you'll get an explicit second confirmation.

Q: Why don't I see the High Privacy switch in Edit mode? A: High Privacy is designed for Agent's multi-step execution. Edit only reads the current selection and only returns a diff — it has no independent path to the cloud. If you want local inference for Edit too, flip the global "local models only" setting.

Q: Can I block Agent from touching certain files? A: Yes — add the path to a project-level .hydite/agent-deny.glob. The Agent sandbox will refuse to read or write.

8. Next steps#

• Learn about Agent's parallel-agent capabilities → Agent Hub guide (rolling out)
• Configure High Privacy mode → Privacy & Sandboxing guide (rolling out)
• Full keymap for Edit mode → Keybindings reference (rolling out)